Five people have died in Beaumont from influenza-like illness, three of which had confirmed cases of the H1N1 strain of the flu, including a 26-year-old.

The health department will not know whether the two people who died this week from flu-like symptoms had H1N1, though both met the criteria, said Beaumont Public Health Director Sherry Ulmer.

The department sent specimens to state labs from the first three cases to determine whether those people had died from the flu, which they had.

But the state will no longer accept specimens for testing unless the person received a flu vaccine or the antiviral Tamiflu to check for possible defects in either treatment, Ulmer said.

Flu is on the rise across the state, particularly the 2009 strain of the H1N1 virus, formerly known as swine flu.

Ulmer said she did not know whether the 26-year-old who died from the flu had any underlying health conditions.

The two other confirmed cases - a 56-year-old and a 65-year-old - did have previously known health conditions that put them at risk for developing flu complications such as bacterial pneumonia, ear infections and dehydration, Ulmer said.